“When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this – you haven’t.” – Thomas Edison

Give up. These words get etched into our minds the moment we face Resistance. They nag at us relentlessly. They are like a hungry mosquito who just won’t stop biting you. The voice in your mind echos again “Give up.”

How can we go on? Nothing works. We’ve tried everything. We stare at the canvas wondering what went wrong. Should I start over? “Give up.”

Many times this voice wins. We are drained. We stop what we ‘re doing. It’s too difficult to go on.

These are the moments that define us. Instead of giving up, we need to reflect on our work. Did we really try everything? Have we taken a break from our work? Is there another solution I haven’t even considered?

When you think you’ve tried everything, just remember, you haven’t. Thomas Edison was once asked by his associate, “Isn’t it a shame that with the tremendous amount of work you have done you haven’t been able to get any results?” Edison replied, “‘Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results! I know several thousand things that won’t work.”

Instead of giving up on a piece you love, try looking at it in a new way. In Ryan Holiday’s The Obstacle is the Way, he talks about turning roadblocks into solutions. What can we learn from what others have done?

You don’t necessarily need to look at what other artists have done. In fact, often times, it can be detrimental to look within the same industry. What have people in other wakes of life done to overcome a problem? Often times, solutions come from places where we aren’t expecting them.

One way to do this is to take a break from your work. When we work on projects too long we can lose focus. We can’t see the forest for the trees.

When this happens, work on a different project, or stop working completelly. Take a break and do something different. Go for a walk. Read a book. Watch a documentary. Do anything to get your mind off the subject.

Then, something miraculous will happen. The answer will come to you. You will be washing your hair in the shower, when an insight strikes you. That is the moment you get back to work.

Too often we give up on a project too soon. We feel like it’s consuming all of our time. We don’t think there’s a solution, but often times there is a solution. We just haven’t tried it yet.

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan

Excuse me while I geek out a bit. I am and have always been a fan of sports and greatness. Every so often, those two mix in perfect harmony and give you a player that transcends sports. Someone who is well known beyond his chosen craft. Someone synonymous with greatness. One of those people is Michael Jordan.

Jordan is widely considered the greatest player to ever play the game of basketball. It is not often that you have near unanimous agreement about a sports player. It’s hard to compare players in different time periods. The games and styles of play are completely different. But when it comes to Michael Jordan, there are very few arguments.

There’s a reason why. In sports, most players never even reach a championship. Jordan won six. Only the best of the best win an MVP. Jordan won five. Jordan has won the scoring title in a season ten times, more than anyone who has ever played basketball. He won two Olympic gold medals for the USA. The most impressive thing might be that he did all of this while retiring three times. Two of which were temporary.

The reason I bring this up is, without failure, none of that success would have been possible. Like his quote says, Michael Jordan failed a lot. He missed over 9,000 shots. He lost 300 games and missed the game winning shot 26 times.

Failure is just part of the game. Even one of the greatest basketball players of all time faced failure. Failure, however, isn’t the goal. It’s what you do after failure that really matters.

These are the questions you must ask yourself if you ever want to be great. Failure is one of life’s greatest teachers. Every mistake you make is a lesson learned. They reveal life’s pitfalls and lead you on the path towards success.